The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra is steadfastly progressing with its Mahler cycle under the direction of its chief conductor Mariss Jansons. Following the releases of the First, Second, Fifth and Sixth Symphonies, the orchestra now turns its attention to the Third Symphony.

Jansons and his Amsterdam-based orchestra performed the Symphonies Nos 2, 3 and 8 in the 2009–11 seasons as part of the full, chronological series of performances given by the Concertgebouw Orchestra of Gustav Mahler’s symphonies to commemorate his 150th birthday and the 100th anniversary of his death. The series is being performed under the direction of various conductors.

Jansons stands out in these performances with an astonishing ear for the minutest of details, and he possesses the ability to integrate all into the virtually infinite overarching climaxes that can make listening to Mahler’s symphonies such an exciting experience.

“Everything about the shape, pacing and grandeur of Mr Jansons’s account suggested that he and his players took Mahler’s grand design to heart. While individual details may seem beside the point, it was hard not to be awed by the solidity of the horn playing in the expansive, exposed line that introduces the work. And the shapely offstage posthorn solos in the third movement, to say nothing of the solo string and woodwind lines that emerge throughout the score, provided an appealing counterweight to the high-impact full ensemble playing. The strings, particularly in Mr Jansons’s plangent reading of the finale, were rich-toned and supple, qualities matched by the remarkably focused woodwind and brass sections. And given Mahler’s penchant for explosive climactic writing (as often in midmovement as in his endings), the ensemble’s percussionists were in their element.” - New York Times

Recorded Live, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, on 3-5 February 2010.